1931*
From the contents of some of the letters I have received as a result of the last mailing piece around Class Dues entitled, "1931's 1941 New Year's Resolution," it has become increasingly apparent to the Secretary that he did not make himself entirely clear. What I was trying to do was to get some action from some of the more procrastinating members of our Class along the lines of sending in their 1940-41 dues. The notice was intended entirely for those who had not paid as yet, and since there are some 'gi men who paid their 1939-40 dues but have not paid this sea- son's it was an appeal for a little more help and cooperation not only to them but also to the men who have not paid at all. Some of you fellows who felt I was asking for next fall's dues in advance were most co- operative and I have already credited your accounts as paid for the coming year. I hope this will clear the situation up, and you all have my apologies for writing such an ambiguous letter.
One of the items that must be taken care of at the Reunion in June is the election of a new Executive Committee to consist of either seven or nine men. From this Executive Committee, the Class Officers to hold us over to the Fifteenth Reunion will be elected. I have asked Dick Chase in Boston to head up the nominating committee and he, in turn, has asked me to request you men to send nominations for the Executive Committee to be elected in June to him, c/o New England Coal and Coke Company, 250 Stuart Street, Boston. Dick and the other members of his committee will then be able to present to you a group of men which will be representative of outclass as a whole. Put your thinking caps on for a couple of minutes and send Dick the names of some of the fellows who you know can do the job of handling our Class affairs for the next five years.
Two weddings are in the offing and we hope they will take place in time for the new brides to be brought to Hanover in June. Miss Jane Sclater, of Pittsfield, Mass., has become engaged to Dick Harpin, who is now employed in the advertising department of Hearst Magazines in Boston. Miss Rhoda E. Cox, of Braintree, Mass., has become engaged to Charles E. "Peanuts" Winslow. In the same vein, we also received a clipping to the effect that Dr. Ed Decker and Miss Louise Farmer were married in Davenport, lowa, late in December. Ed and Louise will live in lowa City where Ed is on the resident staff of the University hospital. And just to make the picture complete family-wise, Sher Guernsey reports the birth of another baby daughter to the Guernsey family on January 29 in Albany; while Adah and Red West announce the arrival of a third boy; and Thelma and Les Billings report Clark Harry's arrival late in the fall.
Dave Bender, from whom we hear only once in a blue moon, says that since he didn't believe he could make Hanover in June, he and his wife were back there this fall in time to see the Big Green play Franklin and Marshall, and spent a few very enjoyable days. On the way back to Burlingame, California, they saw Frank Hardinge and George Lill in Chicago, both of are fine and doing very nicely for themselves. Dave also had a letter from George Stevens of Louisville, Kentucky, in which George said a young sprinter by the name of Harold Michael put in his appearance in the Stevens family, so that George and Helen are carrying on in good old American fashion. In return for Dave's letter we are giving him the customary plug to the effect that he is still with Matson Navigation Company, and since there is a war in the Atlantic, some of you men might like to think of Hawaii for your vacation for, as Dave says, there still isn't a war in the middle of the Pacific.
On his return from some of the warmer climes before Christmas, Frank Hardinge saw Oscar (Frog) Handley in Chattanooga where Frog is in charge of the ready-to-wear department of his father's store. He is also the father of a little girl who calls him Daddy Frog. Frank reports that Tom Patterson is now in Chicago, having moved from Dayton: and last spring he ran into Johnny Gorsline in Rochester at a meeting of the Real Estate Board which he was addressing.
From Hollywood we hear more of Joe Barrington's prolific writings about the screen and its notables, one of which was a story about Dorothy Lamour, based on a personal interview, entitled, "First Rule for Romance"; another in the September issue of Motion Picture about Greta Garbo; and still another one about Jerry Colonna of movie and Bob Hope radio fame entitled, "How to Make Love."
Ernie Moore, in commenting on his various stops around the Middle West says that at St. Louis he missed George Burnett who at the time of Ernie's last call was acting as official chaperone for the Grand Duchess Marie.
After packing his family of wife and two youngsters, age 3 and 5, 1100 miles in two days from Milwaukee to Lyme, New Hampshire, Bob Wagner reports it was quite an experiment and "while every one thought we were crazy, we had a swell time and a good vacation." In the course of his travels he ran into Bill Little who was previously reported to have built himself a home out on Long Island. As a diversion from being a country squire and his married life, Bill has developed into a dog breeder.
Red Rolfe, who is getting ready for the long trek South, reports that he is feeling as fine as a .250 batting average will let him- A few weeks ago he and his wife entertained Gunnar Holstrom and his wife at their camp on Lake Winnepauket in New Hampshire. A couple of weeks later he and Isabel journeyed to Worcester for the week-end where they spent an evening with Lauri Myllykangas and his wife. Both Lauri and Gunnar work for the Norton Company of Worcester, and on the side serve as coaches for the Norton Company baseball team which was so successful last year that the boys were invited to compete in the semi-pro tournament in Wichita, Kansas, for the championship of the United States. Lauri has a rugged young son who already knows how to hold a curve ball. Thanks, Red, for your letter and I know the fellows are all with me in wishing you your best season yet in 1941.
In closing, we have a grand letter from Dick Henry who works for the National City Bank in Tientsin, China. We found this so interesting that we are going to print it almost in its entirety. Here's what Dick says about the situation in the Far East: "The latest blow is the evacuation of American women and children, and nonessential men, instigated by our government and aided and abetted by alarmists both here and at home. Personally, I'm not convinced that it was either necessary or wise, but then I'm probably prejudiced since it meant that Dorothy and our two-year-old Barbara had to leave on the S.S.Mariposa (one of the evacuation ships sent out by the government) on the fourteenth of last month. Goodness knows when I'll see them again, as my leave is not due till the spring of 1942. The whole business took every one by surprise and it was not until magazines such as Time and News Week started coming out that we had any idea about the feeling people at home had about it. People there seem much more stirred up about it than the general run of residents out here, and if it hadn't been for the fact that a lot of the large firms ordered the families of their employees home, I venture to say the evacuation would have been somewhat of a fizzle.
"Of course, there is no gainsaying the fact that in North China we have had our share of trials and tribulations, though naturally on a far smaller scale than anything that is going on in Europe at the present time. Starting in the early spring of last year we had the Barriers, a devilish invention of our little friends next door, which meant the surrounding of the British and French Concessions with barbed wire, in certain sections electrified, resulting in a great deal of inconvenience when one wanted to leave the rather restricted confines of the concession areas, to say nothing of humiliation and indignity in many cases, particularly for the British who were singled out for the worst treatment. Commercial business was hit the hardest, as delays made costly by necessary squeeze and bribery became the order of the day. Then in August we had the worst flood in the history of Tientsin, when the main part of the city and environs was under two to eight feet of filthy, muddy water for almost three months. Fortunately, and surprisingly enough, this did not result in any widespread epidemics as was expected by many. This is attributed by some experts to the fact that there are many chemical factories in Tientsin, and the flooding of their warehouses and godowns resulted in a mixture of a vast amount of chemicals getting into the water and to a certain extent reducing its disease carrying potentialities.
"And now we have the evacuation, breaking up the homes of a large percentage of the American families in this part of the world. The worst part of the whole thing is the devilish uncertainty as to what is going to happen next; keeps every one in a more or less jittery state of mind, though I must say one gets rather inured to it after a time. Much of our time is spent at the radio, listening to the various newscasts from all parts of the world, including the San Francisco station on Treasure Island, which on the whole is not doing a bad job, though its program selection leaves a great deal to be desired. Imagine devoting half an hour to a cooking class which comes over here on Saturday night at 11:45 (7:45 A.M. in San Francisco)—I can't see much excuse for that.
"For the most part our life out here is fairly humdrum, particularly socially, with our better halves away (there is not much in the way of night life for bachelors). The banking business manages to keep going somehow or other, though it is getting harder and harder to make an honest nickel in these days of trade and currency restrictitons; it is especially difficult in the Far East where foreign exchange is the basis of most of our business, and when that is curtailed not much is left."
Thanks, Dick, for the fine letter. Let's have more of them.
Don't forget to send your nominations to Dick Chase.
Secretary, Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Co. 31 Mamaroneck Ave., White Plains, N. Y.
